Tom Attenborough, nephew of Sir David, is directing an intriguing new play as
part of climate week. Daisy Bowie-Sell asks can it really make a
difference?

Tom Attenborough, nephew of nature broadcaster David Attenborough, is a theatre director based in London. He is taking part in the Arcola Theatre's 24-hour play challenge staged as part of Climate Week.

How does this 24-hour challenge work?

We all meet at half past seven the night before, having absolutely no idea what we are going to do. The writers get to meet their actors and directors and then go away and write the play. The directors come in first thing in the morning, read the play and the actors come in an hour later and we have the entire day to rehearse it, block it learn it, sort the sounds, set, props and costume and put it on the stage at 7.30 in the evening. The idea is that the plays will be about climate change, but we don’t want to preach at people – it should be an enjoyable experience.

What do you hope this project will actually achieve?

I hope it will be a way of getting people to think about climate change again. Global warming and climate change were hot topics about three or four years ago and they seem to have been replaced, among other things, by the recession, unemployment and university fees. I think that Climate Week as a whole will reawaken the debate. We’re trying to make an awareness of climate change a positive thing – it is usually associated with things we can’t do anymore: we can’t waste water, we can’t use lights. I hope this will translate the message that working together in a positive way can benefit the planet we inhabit.

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Won’t the majority of your audience members already be rallied to the cause?

Yes, it could well be the case, but I think the people who are most worth probing are the people who are already interested. To be able to get people who are already in this frame of mind, into the positive experience should push them to start feeding the message onwards. People who might have had no interest in or engagement with climate change might come to the see it simply as a piece of theatre and not necessarily engage with the message behind it. So in a way it might even be more beneficial to have people already engaged.

What’s your own personal view of climate change?

I know there are people out there who dismiss climate change as scaremongering. My personal view is I will do everything I can to look after our planet, because ultimately even if there is no scientific truth behind the theories, why harm our planet when we can be looking after it?

I’ve always been interested in the way its been portrayed in theatre. I was involved with a company called Headlong on a play called Earthquakes in London, which was all about the end of the world through climate change. It was a very extreme view, but it provoked debate and got people talking and ultimately I feel that’s the most important thing.

What do you think is the most effective form of climate change activism?

I think it depends. We live in a society where everyone’s individuality is celebrated and I think that’s important in terms of how we address this issue. I think we have got to make people aware of the facts and make people aware of what they can do, and what we hope they should be doing, and encourage people to respond to it in their own way – however they choose to do that will always make a difference, no matter how big or small.

It’s not for me to say we need to set down laws on this, but it is for me to believe that this is an important issue that society should be engaging with, however we choose to do that.

Are your family big on climate change?

It’s actually my younger brother William who was the first person who brought climate change to our attention and asked us to help him to adjust the way we were living as a family and we’ve taken on that mantle. As a family we are very positive about it, very active about it and we believe it’s a very important issue.

Climate Week is between 12 and 18 March. The Arcola's The Climate Week Play in a Day will be staged on Friday March 16 at the Arcola Tent in East London. see www.arcolatheatre.com